PARKS

PARKS; Safe Arrival Of Peonies From Japan

By DOROTHY CONIGLIARO

Published: December 8, 2002

TREE peonies, 500 of them, arrived alive and well on Monday at the Rockefeller State Park Preserve in Sleepy Hollow. They were accompanied by a group of Japanese horticulturists and gardeners, and by Tuesday, planting began in the not-quite frozen ground that had been prepared for them.

The tree peonies are a gift from the Japanese people in commemoration of those lost on Sept. 11.

The first attempt to deliver plants to the preserve earlier this fall was ill-fated. A long delay caused by the dockworkers' dispute on the West Coast did irreparable harm to the shipment of young seedlings. When they arrived at the preserve, they were dead, and the Japanese gardeners who had come to oversee their installation returned to Japan. Staff members at the preserve wondered whether they would be replaced, and if so, whether the new shipment would arrive in time for spring blooming.

The people of Yatsuka-Cho in Japan, Shimane Prefecture, on the island of Honshu, who donated the flowers, rallied. The town replaced the lost goods, but this time they shipped them by air.

A letter from the Japanese townspeople posted at the entrance to the preserve tells something about the tree peonies, known in the Far East as ''the king of flowers.'' It reads in part: ''These flowers bring us happiness and comfort in times of trouble. We hope that these peonies, carefully raised by the producers in our town, can also be loved by and bring peace of mind to the people of the United States.''

Nearly 300 varieties in a profusion of colors have been raised and cultivated in the town since the 18th century. Unlike herbaceous American peonies, the tree peony's stalk is woody, and grows to a height of three to four feet.

Preparations were made to include the peonies in a long-delayed plan to renovate the park's entrance. Native trees and American wildflowers were planted to grow side by side with the seedlings from Japan. The Gateway Project, estimated to cost about $100,000, is supported by the Friends of the Rockefeller Preserve and by local corporations.